SO, you’ve hit Brisbane, picked up the keys to your campervan and thought, ‘wow, Queensland is big. Where do I start?’ Well, Nambour, 101kms north of Brisbane is the home of three “big’’ attractions, so that’s a good jot down for later. But to begin with take advantage of a few days on the Gold Coast, enjoy the fabulous holiday parks and check out the Big Golfball in Broadbeach and the Big Hard Rock Café guitar in Surfers Paradise during your stay. When you are ready to head north again, the obvious attraction to see first in Nambour is the Big Pineapple. The heritage-listed prickly-topped attraction can still be seen and photographed, but don’t be surprised if it looks the worse for wear. The 16 metre-high construction was originally opened in 1971 as part of a working farm, but fell into receivership a couple of years ago. The Big Cow, north of Nambour has also been on shaky ground, but…

AFTER arriving in the Top End, I needed a way to get around and also a place to stay. Luckily both these problems were solved when I picked up a Darwin campervan rental. With the open road to keep me company, I first headed to the Howard Springs Big4 Holiday Park where I could power my new mobile home. Howard Springs was the ideal home base for the first few days of my stay, as I was halfway between the capital city of Darwin and the amazing wilderness of Litchfield and surrounds. In my campervan I was able to cook my own meals while the holiday park provided me a place to relax in the swimming pool. On my first day I headed into Darwin to explore the city. My first stop was the local art gallery and museum, home to the Cyclone Tracey exhibition and the stuffed body of infamous giant saltwater crocodile “Sweetheart”. Hours were spent in this…

BEING surrounded by water means Australia has some of the most spectacular off-shore islands, none the least being the beautiful Tiwi Islands. Located 80km north of Darwin where the Arafura Sea joins the Timor Sea, it’s well worth parking your Darwin campervan rental and spending a day or two on the Tiwi Islands. We boarded SeaCat’s passenger ferry Arafuru Pearl just out of Darwin at Cullen Bay and set sail for the Tiwi Islands community of Nguiu on Bathurst Island. The Tiwi Islands are just a two hour sail by boat. The islands will give you the best insight into the Indigenous way of life. The Arafuru Pearl operates Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays leaving at 7.30am each morning and returning at 2.30pm. It costs only $70 per adult each way. Arriving at the port of Nguiu you are pleasantly surprised by a war welcome from locals who are fishing the waters either side of the boat ramp. It’s here where…

A HOLIDAY in Broome and the far north coast of Western Australia requires more commitment than any other destination in Australia. This sunny, sparkling city is more akin to an island resort than a bustling hub – totally isolated, surrounded by wilderness, and possessing that chilled ‘manana’ attitude that pervades the South Pacific. Getting here is not only a chore, but it’s expensive. You either have to take the long haul up the coast from Perth – ideal if you want to take your time and have the luxury of a campervan rental campervan rental in Western Australia – or trek across the Gibb River Road from Darwin via Kununurra: once again, the perfect adventure for 4WDrivers with plenty of time on their hands. But what if you only have a week of precious vacation, yet still want to see something beyond the town itself? While Broome is a pleasant distraction for two or three days, once you’ve thawed out on…

LADIES and gentlemen, allow me to introduce the one, the only … Ayers Rock. After picking up a Drivenow Campervan Rental in Alice Springs, it’s about a four or five hour drive to Ayers Rock, otherwise known as Uluru, mainly via the Stuart Highway and then Lasseter Highway. Otherwise, if you are coming from Cooper Pedy, it’s about a six-hour drive. Upon arrival at Ayers Rock you will quickly realise this is the most majestic, utterly enchanting place on the planet. Coming from “the Alice”, it’s all bitumen the whole way and really is a great drive. In your campervan go off-road and take a long cut via Kings Canyon, but if you tow a van, then remember it’s best to stick to the road. Camels are in abundance after the Stuart Highway turn-off. Herds of these awkward looking ships of the desert sprawled along the sides of the roads along with wild cattle. Once you enter the township of…

The journey What a drive this was! A total of 531km in 47-degree heat and and the air-conditioning wasn’t working. Worse still, we had it quoted in Alice Springs to fix for a whopping $3100! Fortunately, we got it fixed for $434 in Broome. While in Alice Springs, dinner at the Outlander Steak House is a must. They have 2kg steaks and I finished mine in 42 minutes, which was a mighty achievement. It is very funny watching people try to do it, so just make sure you eat dinner first as it can be quite off-putting. The old Jail is home to the Women’s First Gallery, which highlights all women who were first in their field and makes for some very interesting reading. The old Jail is also haunted so go for a stroll through the cells if you dare. Keen hikers should take in Stanley Chasm, absolutely spectacular. A huge lizard ran in front of me and scared…

The journey Warning: when doing this 564-kilometre drive, make sure you fill up at every single petrol station – even if it’s for only $10! We were caught out and ran out of diesel. Mind you, it wasn’t entirely my fault as the last petrol station we had stopped at had no diesel, but if I had topped up at the previous one, I would have been OK. Thank God for road trains! One kind chap stopped and syphoned me out a few good litres of diesel. It was 46 degrees outside and I couldn’t work out how to get the air-con going using the gas bottles … another lesson: one should learn everything about their rig before they set out. Wild experiences All that aside, it was a fantastic drive. While in Darwin, make sure you visit the Cyclone Tracy Museum (its free) and also the War Museum, the actual site of the Army barracks and check out the…